Podcast: On3 experts talk about how NIL already reshaping recruiting

On3 Senior National Recruiting Editor Jeremy Crabtree joined by On3 National Recruiting Analyst Gerry Hamilton on the Over the Middle podcast. They discussed how the Name, Image and Likeness era in college athletics is already reshaping college football recruiting.

Over the Middle with Jeremy Crabtree · On3.com National Recruiting Analyst Gerry Hamilton

Hamilton said he talked to recruits who say the NIL will be a central factor in their decision.

“Several highly ranked prospects in the 2022 class are closely monitoring the NIL deals that players are receiving at universities the prospects are considering,” Hamilton said. “There was even one prospect committed to a top-10 ranked program that is closely monitoring another school he seriously considered and the NIL deal possibilities.”

Crabtree also talked on the podcast about what he’s hearing from recruiters when it comes to the NIL. Crabtree said he was told by an SEC recruiter that schools already making promises they can’t keep. He said potential landmines lay ahead for everybody involved. Those issues were something Crabtree wrote about last week.

“With the NIL’s impact on recruiting still in its infancy stage, it’s impossible to predict the future,” Crabtree said. Recruiters are quick to point out there are plenty of positives with NIL. And that they’re excited for future stars to start building their brands early in their careers. But many involved see plenty of problems lurking in the weeds.”

SEC impact on Texas, OU recruiting

Crabtree and Hamilton also talked about how Texas and Oklahoma are using their move to the SEC to their advantage on the recruiting trail.

After the past two weeks, you can make an argument that Texas is the nation’s hottest team on the recruiting trail.

In case you missed it, the Longhorns added a commitment from four-star EDGE prospect J’Mond Tapp of Donaldsville (La.) Ascension Monday night. It was a pledge that was preceded just hours earlier by another On300 commitment from Jaray Bledsoe of Marlin, Texas.

A week ago, the Longhorns also added four-star defensive lineman Aaron Bryant out of Southaven (Miss.) High. Bryant, who is 6-foot-4 and 306 pounds, picked the Longhorns over Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Georgia and Alabama.

The trio of four-star commitments all but cements a top-10 recruiting class for the Longhorns. But UT might not have hit its recruiting ceiling yet.

“A top-five class remains in play,” Hamilton said on the podcast. “In order to sign a top-five class, Texas must hit on two five-stars. They must reel in some other top players at key positions.

Nobody is hotter in the 2023 class than the Sooners. Hamilton said a lot of that success is attributed to the impending move to the SEC.

The Sooners’ hot start with the junior class was taken to another level in August with commitments from in-state tight end Luke Hasz, receiver Makai Lemon of Los Alamitos, Calif., Colorado offensive lineman Joshua Bates and Florida receiver Brandon Innis. That run helped Oklahoma become one of the teams that won the recruiting wars in August.